Teaching crochet

I taught a friend to crochet the other night.
She makes the most beautiful jewelry and is wanting to expand on her skills to incorporate some crochet into her work. Never thought of myself to be much of a teacher but it was fun. I'm so happy to have met up with her tonight to see the progress she has made and has already created 2 necklaces for herself. I was fortunate to learn from my grandmother. This is one of the things I remember most as a small child visiting her we sat on the couch and would crochet all day together. Good memories. I haven't crocheted for a long time and so it felt a little awkward at first to pick up the needle again because its been so long but it comes right back easily. Just feeling a little older I guess my joints don't feel like they use to, lol. By working with her on this I have realized how much I miss crocheting and may just make a few things myself soon. Here is what I made for her to start with(pictured), a practice piece. Looking forward to seeing what she creates with this one and where she goes with it. I'm pretty impressed how quickly she picked up on it. Makes me happy that I can help. She will be opening up an etsy shop soon and I will publish the link for you to check out her work when it's up and running.

Leather Scrap Rings

I listed some scrap leather rings in my accessory shop today.
uniques.etsy.com

Earrings

Assorted Bracelets

Here are some assorted bracelets I made this afternoon.
These are now available in my online shop. E-mail me if you'd like to custom order one in a special size or color. Available with crystal rivets and also with standard silver rivets.

Dangle Earrings can also be ordered

Accepting Ideas for Show Names

I made a huge 8.5" red leather lily brooch yesterday while messing around. I would like to make more flowers, hair pins and bags along these lines with some different types of flowers. I am just beginning to experiment and this lily was my first. Its now available in my shop
uniques.etsy.com





Here is a photo of the front of the postcard I am working on for our show in March.
I would love to collect some ideas from anyone who has a good idea for a name for the show.
Its 3 of us. I make handbags and accessories out of leather and Paige Jennings makes purses out of skateboards and Ashley makes plushies , bird mobiles and hand painted furniture.
If you would like to leave me a comment with any ideas that would be great!! This would be a huge help. Thanks so much!

Leather Chokers

Seems like forever since I last updated my blog. Friday was back down at the gallery making more items and since then I have been working overtime trying to get as much done as possible. I made 25 new items since Friday, many of which wont be listed in my shop, but there are a few that have made their way. Today I finished up 2 custom leather chokers for a client. She helped to design this very elegant choker. I liked it so much that I made 6 more in a variety of different colors. I will be busy and may not get a chance to update until this weekend after the holiday. Hopefully things will begin to settle down a bit and I will have the chance to work on some other projects I have been trying to finish up.

To purchase a choker or see more of my work visit my accessory shop uniques.etsy.com

Unisex Leather Pendant Necklaces

I have been asked a lot lately if I sell any items for men so I decided to make some leather pendant necklaces that are unisex. These are now available in my uniques.etsy.com shop.

These are great because you can switch out any pendants I sell or even your own for a different look so these make great gifts if you are looking for something nice, unique and inexpensive.

Custom Chokers

I just finished 2 custom chokers. I really like how the black one came out. Its very elegant with the tie. I will definately be making more of these.

An owl I made a couple days ago. Cute. I love owls!!

Some New Items

I am starting to make some holiday ornaments for the downtown boutique and also will be submitting a few to Sierra Arts for their holiday tree. I am still deciding what to make though. I started with birds because I was inspired by my friend Ashley. I will be making some stars and some other animals soon. The bird ornament is in my artbyuniques.etsy shop if you are interested in seeing more or would like to purchase one.



I also made this necklace and will be making some chokers and a variety of these necklaces later this week as well; one is for a custom order and the others will be going up in my shop.
This one is now available in my uniques.etsy.com shop

More Leather Jewelry Creations

Playing around, I created a leather cuff with flowers all around it; I like this one a lot! The necklace was made using a unique slider construction so you can position the flowers wherever you want.

They are both available for purchase at LaBussola Boutique downtown Reno or by contacting me by e-mail.

Leather Cuff Bracelets

I added 2 new leather flower cuffs to my shop today. One Red and one Brown and tan. I love these. They are very soft and fun to make. I don't use a pattern for them; I just randomly start cutting petals out so each bracelet is completely different. I will be adding more versions to my shop in the next week and will also be showing them to a couple of boutiques in town tomorrow.
These make great gifts. In fact I think I will make things easy on myself this year and make these for all the women in the family instead of making purses. Making handbags for everyone is just way too much work, but I always seem to do it anyway, working up until the last minute not giving myself a chance to breathe. Time for something different I think; time for a nice break and allow myself to enjoy a little more of the holidays.